Tag Archives: ewg

I’ve sat through many conferences, read hundreds of books, and spoken with countless experts about the causes of and potential solutions for our modern obesity epidemic.

Everyone has their own opinion. Some make sense. Others are overly simplistic — take the calories-in/calories-out fat loss formula, for instance. And most completely miss the point by approaching the topic with extreme tunnel vision.

In my opinion, solving problems usually calls for some lateral thinking, or what I call thinking outside of The Box. In other words, getting to the bottom of obesity requires that the conversation move beyond just diet and exercise alone.

This conversation can go in many directions. We could talk about the effects of sleep deprivation on weight gain, the role of stress in blood sugar dysregulation, or even how infections contribute to insulin resistance and thus fat storage.

But one leading cause of obesity that often gets lost in this ongoing discussion is how the abundance of toxic chemicals in our air, food, water, and even those lurking in your kitchen and bathroom cabinets are making you fat.

It is blatantly obvious that obesity has steadily risen as our food supply has become more processed and refined. I think we can all agree on that. Yet during this same period the number of chemicals in our environment has exploded in lock-step with our waistlines. For instance, in his fascinating-yet-kinda-scary book The Hundred Year Lie, author Randall Fitzgerald states that in a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control involving 2,400 adults and children, more than two hundred synthetic chemical toxins were found in the subjects’ bodies, with a hundred more chemicals suspected to be present.

The human body was never intended to deal with this kind of chemical assault. In fact, when you think about it, your body is a highly complex machine within which literally thousands of biochemical reactions are taking place at all times. If you’ve ever taken a laboratory course in Chemistry, you know that mixing random chemicals together can be a bad idea. You never know what you’re gonna get!

According to a growing number of research scientists studying obesogens, the chemicals we inhale, eat, drink, and lather ourselves with during and after a shower are making us fat.